INTERVIEW: ALICE MERTON

The devil works hard but Alice Merton certainly works harder. To paraphrase one of her hit singles, the singer-songwriter hit the ground running when her debut single No Roots soared to number one in 2016 but instead of resting on her laurels, Merton set to work establishing her own record label Paper Plane Records International on which she will be releasing her debut album Mint.

We caught up with Alice Merton to find out what keeps her so driven.

How old were you when you realised you wanted to be a professional musician?

I was 5 years old when I dreamed of becoming a musician.

Which bands / musicians influenced you the most when you were growing up?

I grew up listening to a lot of classical music and opera. When I turned 13 I started listening to The Killers and a lot of indie rock music.

What was the motivation behind starting your own record label?

I am very stubborn and didn’t want to change my music. Everyone at a record label told me to do things differently and take out certain parts in songs or work with other people before I release anything. I didn’t really want to do that, so I started my own record label.

Did the experience of constantly relocating shape your musical outlook?

Definitely. In the lyrics but also melody wise I became very open to experimenting with different sounds.

What can we expect from your upcoming album MINT?

You can expect a mixture of emotions and experiences all packed into 11 bass driven songs.